diff --git a/AGENTS.md b/AGENTS.md
index d837b4f..ce8c175 100644
--- a/AGENTS.md
+++ b/AGENTS.md
@@ -50,6 +50,7 @@ src/
 	message.ts           Encoding detection, splitting, bit counting, SMPP date formatting
 	pdu.ts               pduToObj / objToPdu / pduReturn — synchronous, result-returning
 	pdu-framer.ts        PduFramer: a byte stream cut into complete PDUs
+	pdu-transport.ts     PduTransport: the socket a session reads complete PDUs off
 	pending-requests.ts  PendingRequests: sequence numbers, correlation, timeout, abort
 	reassembly.ts        Reassembler: capped, expiring multipart groups
 	reconnect-loop.ts    ReconnectLoop: backoff, retry timer, stopped-ness
@@ -295,6 +296,13 @@ exactly 140.
   that loop before tearing down, so every deliberate shutdown emits `close`. Without the split an
   application that opens a replacement client on `close` ends up holding two binds on one account.
 
+- **`session.sock` is a getter over `PduTransport`, and stays public.** Maintainer's call, 2026-08-31:
+  `session.ts` had reached its line cap, so the socket-to-PDU seam todo.md named was opened —
+  `PduTransport` owns the socket, the framer and the parse, and hands the session raw bytes, framed
+  PDUs, parsed ones and an unreadable stream. Reading `session.sock` is unchanged; assigning it no
+  longer compiles, which never rewired the handlers and so never worked. The transport stays
+  unpublished like the other collaborators.
+
 - **A client re-binds after a drop unless it is told not to.** Maintainer's call, 2026-08-31:
   surviving a dropped link is most of what the session layer is for, and behind an opt-in an
   application that never read the options table got none of it. `reconnect` takes
diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
index 52e2148..8e88f4f 100644
--- a/README.md
+++ b/README.md
@@ -316,7 +316,7 @@ TypeScript users can import `SmppLog` to have the compiler check one.
 | `sms` | An SMS arrives, reassembled if it was multipart. Carries `sendResp()`, `sendDlr()` and the `smsId` it was answered with. |
 | `dlr` | A delivery report arrives, one per segment. `smsId` is undefined when the peer marked a receipt whose body carries no readable id. `statusMsg` names `statusId` unless the peer sent a `message_state` this library cannot name — then `statusId` is that raw value and `statusMsg` is whatever the body said, or `UNKNOWN`. |
 | `messageDlr` | Every segment of a multipart message sent with `dlr: true` has been reported on, carrying the worst status of the segments. Merging needs the SMSC to number its segment ids `<base>-<n>`, which is this library's own server's convention — an SMSC that hands out unrelated ids per segment never fires it. A base is merged once: a later message the SMSC gives the same ids is reported on through `dlr` alone, and an earlier one still collecting loses its merged report as well. |
-| `close` | The session is over: you closed it, or the link dropped with `reconnect: false`. Nothing brings it back. |
+| `close` | The session is over, because nothing will bring the link back. Fires once, whether you closed it or the link failed for good. |
 | `disconnected` | The link dropped and the reconnect loop will retry it. Do not open a replacement client here — the session you hold comes back on its own, and `reconnected` says when. |
 | `reconnected` | The client re-bound after a drop. |
 | `sessionError` | Something failed on a live session, including a hook or listener that threw or, if it was `async`, rejected. |
diff --git a/src/pdu-transport.ts b/src/pdu-transport.ts
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..6ce41be
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/pdu-transport.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,91 @@
+import type { PduObject } from './pdu.ts';
+import type { SmppLog } from './log.ts';
+import type { Socket } from 'node:net';
+import type { VoidResult } from './result.ts';
+import { PduFramer } from './pdu-framer.ts';
+import { pduToObj } from './pdu.ts';
+
+export type PduTransportOptions = {
+	log: SmppLog;
+	onClose: () => void;
+	/** Raw bytes, before framing. */
+	onData: (chunk: Buffer) => void;
+	onError: (err: Error) => void;
+	/** A complete PDU, before it is parsed. */
+	onFramed: (pdu: Buffer) => void;
+	onPdu: (pduObj: PduObject) => void;
+	/** Nothing further can be read off this stream, whatever the socket does next. */
+	onUnreadable: (err: Error) => void;
+};
+
+/** A socket read as a stream of complete PDUs. A reconnect attaches a new socket in its place. */
+export class PduTransport {
+	private readonly options: PduTransportOptions;
+	private framer = new PduFramer();
+	private socket: Socket;
+
+	constructor(options: PduTransportOptions, sock: Socket) {
+		this.options = options;
+		this.socket = sock;
+	}
+
+	get sock(): Socket {
+		return this.socket;
+	}
+
+	/** Wires a freshly opened socket in, replacing any previous one. */
+	attach(sock: Socket): void {
+		// The socket being replaced is already dead, and its three handlers still point here.
+		if (this.socket !== sock) this.socket.removeAllListeners();
+
+		this.socket = sock;
+		this.framer = new PduFramer();
+
+		sock.on('data', chunk => { this.read(chunk); });
+		sock.on('close', () => { this.options.onClose(); });
+		sock.on('error', err => {
+			this.options.log.warn('transport - socket error', { message: err.message });
+			this.options.onError(err);
+			this.options.onClose();
+		});
+	}
+
+	write(pdu: Buffer): VoidResult {
+		if (this.socket.destroyed) return { err: new Error('Socket is closed') };
+
+		this.socket.write(pdu);
+
+		return {};
+	}
+
+	private read(chunk: Buffer): void {
+		this.options.onData(chunk);
+		this.framer.push(chunk);
+
+		const framed = this.framer.next();
+
+		if (framed.err) {
+			this.options.log.warn('transport - unusable stream, closing', { message: framed.err.message });
+			this.options.onUnreadable(framed.err);
+
+			return;
+		}
+
+		for (const pdu of framed.pdus) {
+			this.options.onFramed(pdu);
+
+			const parsed = pduToObj(pdu);
+
+			if (parsed.err) {
+				this.options.log.warn('transport - could not parse an incoming PDU, closing', {
+					message: parsed.err.message,
+				});
+				this.options.onUnreadable(parsed.err);
+
+				return;
+			}
+
+			this.options.onPdu(parsed.pduObj);
+		}
+	}
+}
diff --git a/src/session-options.ts b/src/session-options.ts
index 9c47b9b..adc28e2 100644
--- a/src/session-options.ts
+++ b/src/session-options.ts
@@ -143,6 +143,8 @@ function checkLimits(limits: [string, number, number][]): VoidResult {
 	return {};
 }
 
+const backoffDelays: readonly string[] = ['maxDelay', 'minDelay'];
+
 function checkReconnect(reconnect: unknown): VoidResult {
 	if (reconnect === undefined || reconnect === false) return {};
 
@@ -150,11 +152,20 @@ function checkReconnect(reconnect: unknown): VoidResult {
 		return { err: new Error('reconnect takes { maxDelay, minDelay }, or false to turn it off') };
 	}
 
-	// A minDelay of 0 never doubles, so the backoff never starts and every retry lands at once.
-	return checkLimits([
-		['maxDelay', delayOr(reconnect.maxDelay, defaults.maxDelay), 1],
-		['minDelay', delayOr(reconnect.minDelay, defaults.minDelay), 1],
-	]);
+	for (const key of Object.keys(reconnect)) {
+		if (!backoffDelays.includes(key)) {
+			return { err: new Error(`reconnect has no ${key}, name ${backoffDelays.join(' or ')}`) };
+		}
+	}
+
+	const maxDelay = delayOr(reconnect.maxDelay, defaults.maxDelay);
+	const minDelay = delayOr(reconnect.minDelay, defaults.minDelay);
+	// A delay of 0 never doubles, so the backoff never starts and every retry lands at once.
+	const checked = checkLimits([['maxDelay', maxDelay, 1], ['minDelay', minDelay, 1]]);
+
+	if (checked.err || maxDelay >= minDelay) return checked;
+
+	return { err: new Error(`maxDelay must be minDelay or more, got ${String(maxDelay)}`) };
 }
 
 function isRecord(value: unknown): value is Record<string, unknown> {
diff --git a/src/session.ts b/src/session.ts
index 1dbb84a..63768bc 100644
--- a/src/session.ts
+++ b/src/session.ts
@@ -11,14 +11,14 @@ import { DlrMerger } from './dlr-merger.ts';
 import { EventEmitter } from 'node:events';
 import { IncomingRequests } from './incoming-requests.ts';
 import { LinkTimers } from './link-timers.ts';
-import { PduFramer } from './pdu-framer.ts';
+import { PduTransport } from './pdu-transport.ts';
 import { PendingRequests } from './pending-requests.ts';
 import { ReconnectLoop } from './reconnect-loop.ts';
 import { SendWindow } from './send-window.ts';
 import { errorFrom } from './error-from.ts';
 import { optionalParamsMinVersion } from './defs/constants.ts';
 import { bindCarries, bindCommands, defaultSystemId, defaults } from './session-options.ts';
-import { isResp, objToPdu, pduReturn, pduToObj } from './pdu.ts';
+import { isResp, objToPdu, pduReturn } from './pdu.ts';
 import { silentLog } from './log.ts';
 import { submitSms } from './send-sms.ts';
 
@@ -47,8 +47,6 @@ export class Session extends EventEmitter<SessionEvents> {
 	declare prependOnceListener: <K extends keyof SessionEvents>(event: K, listener: SessionListener<K>) => this;
 	declare removeListener: <K extends keyof SessionEvents>(event: K, listener: SessionListener<K>) => this;
 
-	/** Replaced on reconnect, so hold the session rather than this. */
-	sock: Socket;
 	readonly log: SmppLog;
 
 	/** The role the ESME bound with, whichever end of the link this is. Undefined before any bind. */
@@ -64,12 +62,13 @@ export class Session extends EventEmitter<SessionEvents> {
 	private readonly pending: PendingRequests;
 	private readonly reconnectLoop: ReconnectLoop | undefined;
 	private readonly timers: LinkTimers;
+	private readonly transport: PduTransport;
 	private readonly window: SendWindow;
 
 	private closed = false;
 	private concatReference = 0;
 	private draining = false;
-	private framer = new PduFramer();
+	private ended = false;
 
 	/** A listener that throws is the application's bug; it must not become ours. Hard rule 1. */
 	override emit<K extends keyof SessionEvents>(
@@ -126,7 +125,6 @@ export class Session extends EventEmitter<SessionEvents> {
 		});
 		this.pending = new PendingRequests(this.log);
 		this.reconnectLoop = this.loopFor(options.reconnect);
-		this.sock = options.sock;
 		this.timers = new LinkTimers({
 			enquireLinkInterval: options.enquireLinkInterval,
 			idleTimeout: options.idleTimeout,
@@ -135,12 +133,18 @@ export class Session extends EventEmitter<SessionEvents> {
 			// Not close(): a link that went quiet is a drop, and a drop is what reconnect is for.
 			onIdle: () => { this.teardown(); },
 		});
+		this.transport = this.transportFor(options.sock);
 		this.window = new SendWindow(options.maxOutstanding ?? defaults.maxOutstanding);
 
 		this.attach(options.sock);
 		this.resetTimers();
 	}
 
+	/** Replaced on reconnect, so hold the session rather than this. */
+	get sock(): Socket {
+		return this.transport.sock;
+	}
+
 	/** Whether this session's bind direction carries a command. Consulted by the library's senders. */
 	bindAllows(cmdName: string): boolean {
 		return bindCarries(this.boundAs, cmdName);
@@ -187,7 +191,7 @@ export class Session extends EventEmitter<SessionEvents> {
 		tlvs?: Record<string, TlvInput>,
 	): Promise<VoidResult> {
 		const built = pduReturn(pdu, status, params, tlvs);
-		const sent = built.err ? { err: built.err } : this.write(built.buffer);
+		const sent = built.err ? { err: built.err } : this.transport.write(built.buffer);
 
 		// A peer that unbinds and drops the link takes our response with it; that is not a failure.
 		if (sent.err && !this.closed) {
@@ -249,6 +253,21 @@ export class Session extends EventEmitter<SessionEvents> {
 		return drained;
 	}
 
+	private transportFor(sock: Socket): PduTransport {
+		return new PduTransport({
+			log: this.log,
+			onClose: () => { this.onClose(); },
+			onData: chunk => { this.onData(chunk); },
+			onError: err => { this.emit('sessionError', err); },
+			onFramed: pdu => { this.emit('incomingPdu', pdu); },
+			onPdu: pduObj => { this.dispatch(pduObj); },
+			onUnreadable: err => {
+				this.emit('sessionError', err);
+				this.end();
+			},
+		}, sock);
+	}
+
 	private loopFor(reconnect: ReconnectOptions | undefined): ReconnectLoop | undefined {
 		if (!reconnect) return undefined;
 
@@ -289,22 +308,9 @@ export class Session extends EventEmitter<SessionEvents> {
 		return {};
 	}
 
-	/** Wires a freshly opened socket into this session, replacing any previous one. */
 	private attach(sock: Socket): void {
-		// The socket being replaced is already dead, and its three handlers still point here.
-		if (this.sock !== sock) this.sock.removeAllListeners();
-
-		this.sock = sock;
-		this.framer = new PduFramer();
+		this.transport.attach(sock);
 		this.closed = false;
-
-		sock.on('data', chunk => { this.onData(chunk); });
-		sock.on('close', () => { this.onClose(); });
-		sock.on('error', err => {
-			this.log.warn('session - socket error', { message: err.message });
-			this.emit('sessionError', err);
-			this.onClose();
-		});
 	}
 
 	private async request(
@@ -325,7 +331,7 @@ export class Session extends EventEmitter<SessionEvents> {
 			signal: options.signal,
 			timeout: this.options.responseTimeout ?? defaults.responseTimeout,
 		});
-		const written = this.write(built.buffer);
+		const written = this.transport.write(built.buffer);
 
 		if (written.err) {
 			this.pending.settle(seqNr, { err: written.err });
@@ -366,6 +372,15 @@ export class Session extends EventEmitter<SessionEvents> {
 		this.reconnectLoop?.stop();
 		this.teardown();
 		this.dlrMerger.clear();
+		this.emitClose();
+	}
+
+	/** A session torn down by a drop the loop was retrying reaches here with nothing left to tear down. */
+	private emitClose(): void {
+		if (this.ended) return;
+
+		this.ended = true;
+		this.emit('close');
 	}
 
 	private teardown(): void {
@@ -376,10 +391,11 @@ export class Session extends EventEmitter<SessionEvents> {
 		this.pending.settleAll(new Error('Session closed before a response arrived'));
 		this.incoming.clear();
 		this.sock.destroy();
-		this.emit(this.retrying() ? 'disconnected' : 'close');
+
+		if (this.retrying()) this.emit('disconnected');
+		else this.emitClose();
 	}
 
-	/** A drop the loop will bring the session back from is a disconnect, not the end of it. */
 	private retrying(): boolean {
 		return this.reconnectLoop !== undefined && !this.reconnectLoop.isStopped();
 	}
@@ -390,55 +406,9 @@ export class Session extends EventEmitter<SessionEvents> {
 		return this.concatReference;
 	}
 
-	private write(pdu: Buffer): VoidResult {
-		if (this.sock.destroyed) {
-			return { err: new Error('Socket is closed') };
-		}
-
-		this.sock.write(pdu);
-
-		return {};
-	}
-
 	private onData(chunk: Buffer): void {
 		this.emit('data', chunk);
 		this.resetTimers();
-		this.framer.push(chunk);
-
-		const framed = this.framer.next();
-
-		if (framed.err) {
-			this.log.warn('session - unusable stream, closing', { message: framed.err.message });
-			this.emit('sessionError', framed.err);
-			this.end();
-
-			return;
-		}
-
-		for (const pdu of framed.pdus) {
-			if (!this.receive(pdu)) return;
-		}
-	}
-
-	/** False means the PDU could not be read and the session has been closed. */
-	private receive(pdu: Buffer): boolean {
-		this.emit('incomingPdu', pdu);
-
-		const parsed = pduToObj(pdu);
-
-		if (parsed.err) {
-			this.log.warn('session - could not parse an incoming PDU, closing', {
-				message: parsed.err.message,
-			});
-			this.emit('sessionError', parsed.err);
-			this.end();
-
-			return false;
-		}
-
-		this.dispatch(parsed.pduObj);
-
-		return true;
 	}
 
 	private dispatch(pduObj: PduObject): void {
diff --git a/test/session-extras.test.ts b/test/session-extras.test.ts
index 611024e..72c10b3 100644
--- a/test/session-extras.test.ts
+++ b/test/session-extras.test.ts
@@ -365,22 +365,28 @@ describe('reconnect', () => {
 		assert.deepEqual(events, ['disconnected', 'close']);
 	});
 
-	test('reports a drop as close when nothing will retry it', async t => {
+	test('emits close when the session ends while the link is still down', async t => {
 		const smpp = await startServer(t);
-		const { session } = await connect(t, smpp, { reconnect: false });
+		const { session } = await connect(t, smpp);
 
 		assert.ok(session);
 
 		const events: string[] = [];
 
+		session.on('close', () => { events.push('close'); });
 		session.on('disconnected', () => { events.push('disconnected'); });
 
-		const closed = once<true>(resolve => { session.on('close', () => { resolve(true); }); });
+		const down = once<true>(resolve => { session.on('disconnected', () => { resolve(true); }); });
 
 		await peerOf(smpp).close();
-		await closed;
+		await down;
+		await session.close();
 
-		assert.deepEqual(events, []);
+		assert.deepEqual(events, ['disconnected', 'close']);
+
+		await session.close();
+
+		assert.deepEqual(events, ['disconnected', 'close'], 'closing twice is still one close');
 	});
 
 	test('refuses a backoff that would retry without pausing', () => {
@@ -391,11 +397,17 @@ describe('reconnect', () => {
 			/false/,
 			'off is spelled false, so nothing else may stand in for it',
 		);
+		assert.match(
+			checkSessionOptions({ reconnect: { maxDelay: 1000, minDelay: 30_000 } }).err?.message ?? '',
+			/maxDelay/,
+			'a transposed pair asks to never retry faster than 30 s and gets one every second',
+		);
+		assert.match(checkSessionOptions({ reconnect: { minDelayMs: 20 } }).err?.message ?? '', /minDelayMs/);
 		assert.equal(checkSessionOptions({ reconnect: false }).err, undefined);
 		assert.equal(checkSessionOptions({ reconnect: { maxDelay: 60_000, minDelay: 500 } }).err, undefined);
 	});
 
-	test('schedules nothing after a drop when reconnect is false', async t => {
+	test('reports a drop as close, and schedules nothing, when reconnect is false', async t => {
 		const smpp = await startServer(t);
 		const noop = (): void => undefined;
 		const infos: string[] = [];
@@ -410,11 +422,16 @@ describe('reconnect', () => {
 
 		assert.ok(session);
 
+		let disconnects = 0;
+
+		session.on('disconnected', () => { disconnects++; });
+
 		const closed = once<true>(resolve => { session.on('close', () => { resolve(true); }); });
 
 		await peerOf(smpp).close();
 		await closed;
 
+		assert.equal(disconnects, 0);
 		assert.ok(!infos.includes('reconnect - retrying after a drop'));
 	});
 
diff --git a/todo.md b/todo.md
index 2f0d7d9..5049a92 100644
--- a/todo.md
+++ b/todo.md
@@ -125,9 +125,6 @@ session message is a change to every call site.
       loses every incomplete group, and a peer has no reason to resend a receipt it already had
       answered. Surviving one means exposing the merge state for the application to persist and hand
       back, which is a public-surface decision.
-- [ ] **`session.ts` has one seam left in it**, a socket-to-PDU transport, which would move the
-      deliberately public `sock` field out of `Session` or turn it into a getter — a public-surface
-      change, so it waits for a decision.
 - [ ] **Group the session's collaborators under `src/session/`.** Only `session.ts` imports
       `reassembly`, `dlr-merger`, `send-window`, `link-timers`, `reconnect-loop`, `pending-requests`
       and `send-sms`, so the directory would make that boundary visible. Do it on the next